Gotham's Darkest Hour
by Katsa101
Summary: Gotham City has had many criminals in it's lifetime but none like the man who is going to cause more chaos than anyone thought possible. None like The Joker. Joker/OC
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The sound of a doorbell reached Lilith's ears as a new customer walked into her shop. Since her shop was also her house she simply rolled out of her bed wearing black boyleg undies and a long-sleeved shirt that went down to her thighs. She looked over at the clock sitting on her bedside table to see it read:'23:00'. She groaned annoyed at being woken up as she tied up her long dark purple hair into a messy bun. She walked down stairs and into the front of her shop to see an unknown male standing there with a black bag hanging from his shoulder. He was wearing purple suit pants and light purple button up shirt but that wasn't what was weird about him, what stood out the most was his pale white skin and bright green hair.

"Can I help you?" Lilith asked rubbing her eyes tiredly as she watched the strange man warily. The man turned around and looked her up and down before grinning widely.

"Hel-lo beautiful, I'm looking for the uh, person who did _this_ work" The man asked holding out a photo. Lilith rolled her light blue eyes since she couldn't see the photo from that far away and he knew it. She moved towards the strange man, her eyes never leaving his before looking at the photo. It was a photo of a low-level mobster of the Riley Crime Family who was in the shop a few months earlier except now, he was dead.

"Yeah, that's my work but if you are looking for information on the man than you are out of luck" Lilith explained looking at the tattoo of the giant dragon on the dead man's back. The strange man watched as Lilith's face showed no sign of horror or disgust about seeing the dead man he had killed only hours earlier before chuckling at Lilith's response.

"No, no, no, you misunderstand me, doll-face" The strange man said putting the photo away. Lilith leant against her workbench confused. She motioned for him to continue with a simple wave of her hand. The strange man reached into his bag and Lilith quickly prepared herself for a gun or knife but instead it was a bright purple folder. He tossed it to Lilith, who caught it easily and opened the folder to reveal designs… lots of tattoo designs.

"You want me to tattoo you?" Lilith asked shocked making the man chuckle and look around the room.

"You _are_ a tattooist, aren't you?" The man mocked making Lilith glare at him unamused.

"You want _all_ these tattoos?" Lilith asked flipping through the folder and the strange man made a noise of approval. Lilith looked up at this man with a raised eyebrow and clicked her tongue. She looked back down at the folder and turned to the front page to see the word 'Joker' in large, comic-like font.

"The Joker?" Lilith said amused, quietly to herself.

"That's my name, don't wear it out doll-face" The man, apparently named The Joker chuckled. Lilith rolled her eyes and closed the folder. She placed the folder on the bench and folded her arms across her chest.

"First things first Jo…" Lilith started to say before sighing and shaking her head.

"Yeah, I'm not calling you Joker. So, first things first J. When I do tattoos for people like you, I get the money _first_ " Lilith explained simply. The Joker growled before stepping menacingly toward Lilith, who didn't move or show any sign of fear.

"There is no one like me, _doll-face_ " Joker growled annoyed. Lilith smirked amused by the whole situation but as she looked this 'Joker' guy up and down she realized that he wasn't like anyone else to come to Gotham City.

"Either way… payment first" Lilith said simply. The Joker looked Lilith up and down, noticing that even though she was wearing only her underwear and a long t-shirt she was as comfortable as if she was fully clothed. From the lack of pants, The Joker saw that Lilith had a large tattoo on her right thigh of a wolf stalking towards the person looking at the tattoo. He was certain she had more but the long-sleeved shirt was covering them.

"This isn't optional J. Payment first or you can find yourself a new tattooist" Lilith added firmly. The Joker cracked his neck angrily before reaching into his bag and pulling out a large roll of hundred dollar bills wrapped in an elastic band. There was at least two thousand dollars there. He slammed it onto the table trying to intimidate Lilith but she simply picked up the roll of hundreds and grinned happily at him.

"Well then, let me put some pants on and we'll get started on your first tattoo" Lilith said making The Joker look Lilith up and down grinning as she turned around and started walking to the door that lead to her house.

"Oh, no, no, no. You don't need to do that… what's your name, doll-face?" The Joker asked as Lilith turned halfway around looking The Joker up and down as well.

"You can call me whatever you want J… except _doll-face_ " Lilith said simply. Joker chuckled to himself as Lilith disappeared upstairs. The Joker took this time to look around the small tattoo shop. He quickly noticed that there was only one bench set up in the shop which means that Lilith was the only person who worked here. There was no photos of friends or family which means she was pretty much a loner. There were a lot of photos of her designs hanging in frames which The Joker recognized as tattoos on several of the low-level mobsters that he had killed in the last few weeks since coming to Gotham City.

"Now, why do Riley's men come to _you_ for tattoos?" The Joker asked himself curiously.

"Because I'm the best… and I'm willing to work at night." Lilith replied walking back into the store wearing black jeans and the long-sleeved shirt but now the sleeves were rolled up to her elbows. The Joker could see a large phoenix tattoo on her left forearm that disappeared under the shirt. The Joker was impressed that she had managed to sneak up on him without even trying.

"Now, I don't know which Crime Family you are involved in, or even if you are involved in any of Gotham's Crime Family but in my store, it's a mutual zone. If you have a problem with someone, you deal with it outside of this store. Am I clear?" Lilith asked seriously. The Joker watched her curiously before grinning.

"Crystal clear _toots_ " The Joker said chuckling as Lilith rolled her eyes at her new 'name'. She picked up the folder and flipped through it curiously.

"Skull with a jester hat… a large toothy smile… a set of playing cards…. the letter J… which tattoo do you want first?" Lilith asked as she looked at the designs, slightly impressed. The Joker's white hand slammed down next to hers and flipped to the first page of the folder.

"They are in order, toots" The Joker said grinning as they looked down at the first tattoo, which was the word 'Joker' in large comic-like letters. Lilith grabbed her ink and needle gun.

"Where do you want it?" Lilith asked as she poured some ink into a container. The Joker slowly unbuttoned his light purple shirt revealing his slim, but very toned body. Lilith watched him as he folded the shirt carefully and placed it over the chair.

"I want it… right here" The Joker said as he traced a line along his stomach above his belly button. Lilith nodded and started drawing the design on the carbon paper. The Joker took a seat and waited patiently watching the strange woman in front of her curiously.

"So… why is this your first tattoo?" Lilith asked conversationally as she continued to draw. The Joker watched Lilith and tapped his white fingers on his knee thinking about how to answer her.

"So people know my name…" The Joker replied simply. Lilith raised an eyebrow and looked up at him.

"I have a feeling that people are going to know your name whether you get it tattooed on your stomach or not" Lilith muttered making The Joker start laughing hysterically.

"Oh, you are a funny one toots" The Joker said wiping the tears from his eyes. Lilith smiled to herself before sitting back and looking at the finished design. She picked up the carbon paper and motioned for The Joker to stand up. He did so and Lilith knelt in front of The Joker and cleaned the skin where he wanted the tattoo.

"While you're down there…" The Joker joked wiggling his eyebrows. Lilith placed the carbon paper over the cleaned skin leaving a copy of the design on his skin.

"Is this your first tattoo?" Lilith asked standing back up and putting the carbon paper on the table.

"Yeah, but I have a high tolerance for pain so don't worry about hurting me" The Joker explained chuckling. Lilith motioned for The Joker to lie down as she went over and grabbed her tattoo gun.

"I was actually going to say that you shouldn't piss off the person who is about to tattoo you" Lilith explained sarcastically making The Joker laugh loudly. Lilith waited patiently until his laughter subsided before starting the tattoo. The few hours were spent in a comfortable silence. Lilith was aware that The Joker was watching her every movement but Lilith remained focused on the tattoo until it was finished.

"Alright J, this one is all done. Since you've paid for most of the tattoos in this folder already you can just drop by whenever you want and we will do the next one" Lilith explained packing up her kit while The Joker admired the tattoo in the mirror.

"You do good work, toots. I'll be seeing you… real soon" He cackled before disappearing out the front door.

…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

A month had passed since The Joker had come into Lilith's tattoo shop and gotten his first tattoo but she knew that he was still in Gotham since he was on the news every single night.

 _"_ _The newest criminal in Gotham City… a man who calls himself 'The Joker'… has once again robbed a bank. He went in with five men and walked out with none. The Joker is a ruthless psychopath and every citizen in Gotham is asked to call the police if they see this man"_

Lilith walked over to her fridge and grabbed a beer as she watched the news with an amused smirk. She sat down on the lounge and put her feet onto the table. She was wearing dark green shorts and a black t-shirt and was just about to take a sip of her beer when the bell on her front door rung. Lilith sighed and put down the beer and walked through to the front of her shop to find none-other than The Joker standing in her shop. He was wearing white suit pants and a white button up shirt that was stained with blood.

"Hello toots, time for my next tattoo" The Joker said grinning. Lilith raised an eye brow and looked at the blood on his shirt. The Joker looked down and started chuckling darkly.

"Oh, don't you worry your pretty little head about that. I've stitched it up" The Joker said lifting up the corner of his shirt with a finger to reveal a crude stitch job that blood was still seeping out off. Lilith scoffed and walked towards The Joker.

"That looks like it was done by five-year-old girl" Lilith commented making the Joker growl annoyed and grab her by the throat. Lilith clicked her tongue annoyed but ultimately remained calm as The Joker's face went from fury to confusion to curiosity before letting go of Lilith's neck and stepping back.

"You want me to stitch it up properly?" Lilith asked calmly as The Joker watched her curiously.

"I didn't uh know you were a _nurse_ as well" The Joker said looking her up and down as if picturing her in a sexy nurse's outfit. Lilith turned her back on The Joker, once again surprising him by her actions, and grabbed her first aid kit from under her work bench.

"I'm not but I can do a better job than that" Lilith commented simply as she opened the first aid kit and looked at The Joker, waiting for his response. He looked down at his wound and shrugged, knowing that it did need to be re-stitched since it was still bleeding from the corners of the wound and it was already red and itchy from an infection.

"Take off your shirt and lay down" Lilith said bringing the first aid kit over to where The Joker was. He laid down on the table where he had gotten his tattoo done several weeks ago. The tattoo was still fresh and to Lilith's surprise it looked like he was looking after it properly.

"Always getting me out of my shirt" The Joker teased as he unbuttoned his shirt and folded it neatly, placing it over the table. Lilith placed a cold hand on his warm stomach and started cutting out the old stitches.

"Oh yeah, I hired someone to stab you in hopes that you would come here so I could get you out of your shirt" Lilith said sarcastically as she focused her attention on pulling out the old stitches. The Joker watched as she grabbed some disinfectant and poured it onto a clean cloth.

"This is going to hurt… though I doubt it will be more than getting the actual injury" Lilith commented before starting to clean the wound. The Joker didn't even flinch as she thoroughly cleaned it out and it started bleeding again. Lilith tossed the bloody cloth into the bin before police sirens could be heard in the distance. Both Lilith and The Joker froze as they watched three police cars drive straight past her shop.

"I assume they were for you?" Lilith asked simply as she started to re-stitch the wound. The Joker flashed a toothy grin at her and drummed his fingers on the table he was laying on.

"So you do watch the news… here I was thinking that you had no idea who I was" The Joker said, faking being upset by this news. Lilith rolled her eyes and finished stitching the wound and placed a new bandage over it.

"Yeah, I've seen you on the news every night since you first walked into my shop one month ago" Lilith said simply as she took of her gloves and cleaned up her first aid kit. She turned around to find The Joker standing directly behind her, still not wearing a shirt.

"So why are _you_ not scared of me?" The Joker growled dangerously. Lilith leant against the table fiddling with the silver ring in the shape of a dragon around her middle finger on her right hand, not paying attention to The Joker. This made him even angrier and placed his hands on the table on either side of Lilith and leant in close. Lilith looked up at The Joker, a small, amused smirk playing on her lips.

"That's easy J. I know you won't hurt me" Lilith said simply and with such certainty that The Joker clenched his fists angrily and opened his mouth to reply before quickly shutting it again. Lilith smirk amused and gently pushed the shocked man away from her before walking over to her desk and pulling out the folder that The Joker had given her on their first meeting.

"Alright, so your next two tattoos are pretty small so we can get them both done in this session if you like?" Lilith asked as she flipped open to design of a small letter 'J' and the word 'Damaged' in script font. She couldn't help but grin at the last one since it fit The Joker so well and arguably herself.

"Sounds good, toots" The Joker said snapping out of his shocked trance. Lilith looked up from the folder to find The Joker back to his cocky, confident self as he leant against the bench with his arms crossed over his chest.

"So, where would you like these ones?" Lilith asked as she pulled the designs out of the folder and grabbed her carbon paper.

"The 'J' under my left eye and 'Damaged' on my forehead… so the world knows just how fucked up I am" The Joker explained chuckling making Lilith raise an eyebrow at him.

"Because the killing and blowing buildings up doesn't prove that" Lilith muttered to herself. The Joker ignored her comment and watched her trace the tattoo design onto the carbon paper. He could see the full phoenix tattoo on her left forearm now. He also noticed the start of another tattoo on her back. He could see the tips of what looked to be two daggers before the rest of it was covered by her shirt.

"So why do you thin _k_ I won't hurt you?" The Joker asked curiously as Lilith walked over and placed the carbon paper with the word 'damaged' on The Joker's forehead, printing the word onto his head for her to tattoo. She grabbed her needle and ink kit before pulling up a chair and sitting in front of The Joker. She looked him in the eyes and winked at him but didn't reply.

"Hold still J" Lilith said amused by The Joker's confused face as she started to tattoo his forehead. The Joker remained silent, staring intently at Lilith neck and noticed a very faint scar that ran vertically down the side of her throat. The Joker clicked his tongue curiously as Lilith finished the tattoo, wiped away the blood and extra ink.

"All right J, lift your head up a bit" Lilith said as she placed a finger under his chin and moved his face up so his eyes were in line with hers. She could feel his breath on her lips but she ignored the feeling it gave her and moved the tattoo gun over to the left side of his face.

"Ah ta-ta. Why are you not putting the design on my skin first this time?" The Joker asked grabbing Lilith around the wrist gently. Lilith looked at his white hand on her slightly tanned wrist and blinked before looking at him.

"The uh tattoo is rather simply so I can do it freehand" Lilith explained simply. The Joker hesitated slightly before letting go of her wrist and watching her face as she concentrated on the tattoo she was giving him. He felt his eye twitch involuntarily at the feeling of the needles going into the skin that was so sensitive but Lilith was finished almost as soon as she had started. She gently wiped away the blood and extra ink before sitting back and looking at her finished products. She made a noise of approval before standing up and taking off her gloves. She tossed them into the bin before packing up her kit. When she turned back around she found The Joker was back in his blood-stained shirt and was buttoning it up. He went to leave but paused and turned only his head around to look at Lilith.

"Thanks for stitching me up toots" The Joker whispered finally succeeding in shocking Lilith. He turned back around grinning before walking out of her shop.

…..


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

A young man stepped out of the driver's seat of a black limo in the middle of the narrows of Gotham City. He had short black hair and was wearing black jeans and a dark blue white beater singlet showing off his muscles. He looked up at the rundown, broken and abandoned building that they had pulled up in front of. He grabbed a gun from the dashboard and stuck it down the back of his jeans before opening the passenger door.

"The meeting is all set up boss" The man said and The Joker stepped out of the car wearing a dark purple suit that contrasted greatly against his white skin.

"Thanks, Hunter. You didn't disappoint with the limo but uh, next time make it purple" The Joker said chuckling. Hunter's face remained emotionless and simply nodded as he closed the door behind The Joker.

"No problem, boss" Hunter replied making The Joker frown at him and mutter something about needing to lighten up.

"Let's get this show started" The Joker said grinning once more as Hunter followed The Joker into a rundown club. The Joker walked into the open downstairs area and looked around, imagining the nightclub in all its glory after he renovates it. He laughed hysterically as he spun around with his arms wide while Hunter watched emotionlessly. He was clearly used to seeing his boss act like this.

"Mr. Joker, it is a pleasure to meet you" Sean Riley said as he walked through the back entrance and towards The Joker. The Joker stopped twirling and turned to the leader of the Riley Crime Family. Sean was an elder male who hair was greying but still he had a tough and no-nonsense presence about him that most people feared. The Joker however, was not most people. The white skinned criminal grinned at the Irish Mob Boss, walking forward and shaking hands with him.

"Ah, the pleasure is all _mine_. After all, you are selling me this _b_ eautiful building at an extremely cheap price" The Joker said using his hands to exaggerate his words. Sean watched The Joker's every movement closely since his unpredictable behaviour was already well known in Gotham City. The Joker noticed this which caused him to chuckle darkly.

" _Relax_ Sean. I'm not going to kill you… today. No, no, no, no. Not today" The Joker said confidently but unsurprisingly it didn't make Sean relax at all. It in-fact had the opposite effect and Sean stood up even straighter, if that was even possible.

"Why do you want this place anyway? It's a piece of crap" Sean commented looking around at the run-down building with disgust. The Joker's grin faltered for moment before he silently walked closer to Sean without him realizing until it was too late. The Joker had his hand over the mouth of the Irish Mob Boss, his grip was bound to leave bruises because it was so tight.

" _You_ just lack the imagination in that tiny, little brain of yours." The Joker growled darkly before looking at his hand and grinning. He stepped back and started laughing, making Sean look at him like he was crazy while holding his bruised jaw.

"What the hell is so funny?" Sean growled, his Irish accent even thicker because he was angry. The Joker stopped laughing and stared at Sean grinning.

"You just gave me an idea for my next tattoo" The Joker said simply, tapping Sean on the nose like a little child and not one of the most fear names in Gotham. Sean stepped back angrily but he was smart enough not to mess with The Joker before he quickly forgot his anger and looked at The Joker's new tattoos on his face.

"You get them from The Tattooist?" Sean asked curiously causing The Joker to look at him with a sly grin.

"I got them from _a_ tattooist" The Joker said sarcastically turning his back on Sean and looked at Hunter with a smirk. Hunter stood close to the door with his arms folded over his chest and stern look on his face. The Joker rolled his eyes at Hunter's stern face and spun back around to face Sean, who was mirroring Hunter's unamused face.

"You're about as boring as Hunter over there. Yes, I got them from the tattooist that gave some of your men their tattoos" The Joker said as Lilith's face popped into his head. He shook the image away with a click of his tongue and saw Sean staring at him seriously.

"It's not just my men. It's Falcone's men. It's Maroni's men. It's Sabatini's men. Everyone connected to Gotham's Underworld goes to The Tattooist" Sean explained which surprised The Joker greatly.

"Why?" The Joker asked curiously, his head cocking to the side slightly.

"Because she is the best. Mr. Joker, you do whatever you want in Gotham and that makes a lot of people uneasy and others excited… but you can't mess with The Tattooist. You can't start any fights in her shop… with _any_ of her customers." Sean warned seriously making The Joker looked at Sean confused before leaning forward slightly.

"Yes, she told me the same thing but I am yet to find out _why_?" The Joker asked mockingly but inside he was _very_ curious about the woman they called 'The Tattooist'. He waited impatiently for Sean to reply but he never did. The Joker sighed over-dramatically and rolled his eyes before turning around in thought.

"Does ' _The Tattooist'_ ever give… medical attention to people?" The Joker asked, his back still turned to Sean. He lightly ran a hand over his own stitches remembering Lilith's cold hands on his white skin. He was brought out of his memory by Sean laughing loudly. The Joker spun around to find Sean had doubled over and was holding his stomach in laughter. The Joker's eyes widened in surprise and looked over at Hunter, who was still standing there with a stern impression.

"And they call me crazy" The Joker said amused, making Sean sober up and look at The Joker.

"Mr. Joker, I can guarantee you one thing; The Tattooist would rather watch one of _us_ bleed to death than lift a finger to help us. My men have your payment so the building is yours. Enjoy your pile of crap" Sean said simply before turning and walking out of the building leaving a very shocked and confused Joker standing in his newest purchase.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"Alright, so we are up to the large smile, where do you want it?" Lilith asked as she prepared her tattoo kit and The Joker stood beside her wearing a black suit pants and a dark purple jacket that showed off his pale skin and toned body. Lilith looked up from the purple folder when she realized he wasn't going to answer and found him staring at her deep in thought. She clicked her fingers in front of his face snapping him out of his trance and he looked down at Lilith confused for a moment before grinning.

"New plan toots. I want this tattoo on my hand" Joker said digging into his pants pocket and pulling out a crumbled piece of paper. Lilith raised an eyebrow at him before grabbing the paper. Both Lilith and The Joker felt a spark run up their arms as their fingers touched but both ignored it. She un-crumbled the paper to find a drawing of a large open mouth smile. Lilith looked at the design before up at The Joker's smiling face.

"You want this… on your hand?" Lilith asked curiously and The Joker grinned nodding enthusiastically.

"Yeah. I _really_ do, toots" The Joker said rolling his shoulder blades and listening to his sore muscles crack slightly. Lilith shook her head amused and started drawing up the design on the carbon paper.

"So I met someone who knew you this week… Sean Riley" The Joker said watching Lilith closely to see if he got a reaction from her. Lilith continued to draw disinterestedly but made a noise of acknowledgement to let him know she was listening. The Joker frowned when he didn't get a reaction from her so he tried again.

"And he had some interesting things to say about you… yes he did, he did, he did." The Joker continued but once again Lilith gave no reaction to what he said. She simply motioned for The Joker to give her his hand. He placed his white hand in her slightly tanned one and watched as she cleaned the spot on his left hand where the tattoo was going to go.

"Ri- _ley_ says that you don' _t_ just do tattoos for his family. You do them for _every_ one. Everyone in Gotham's Underworld. Every. Single. One" The Joker explained still trying to get some sort of reaction out of Lilith. Lilith raised an eyebrow at this but gave no indication of how she felt about it. She grabbed her tattoo gun and started tattooing his hand.

"I tattoo everyone in Gotham's Underworld because I'm not loyal to any of the crime families" Lilith explained after a moment of silence; finally offering The Joker some sort of reward for his efforts to get a reaction out of her. She kept her eyes on the hand she was tattooing so she didn't notice The Joker smile to himself and then laugh at something he said inside his own head. The Joker watched Lilith for several moments, his right hand sitting on his lap when he felt the stitches from his wound.

"Riley also mentioned that you would rather watch them die than lift a finger to help them, is that true?" The Joker said earning a chuckle from Lilith as she wiped away some of the blood and continued tattooing. The Joker surprised himself by waiting patiently for Lilith to reply because he knew eventually she would. She stopped tattooing for a moment and looked up at The Joker.

"For once in his life Sean Riley is correct. I wouldn't even piss on those men if they were on fire" Lilith explained calmly which made The Joker burst out laughing. He doubled over, grabbing his stomach laughing loudly as Lilith waited patiently for him to finish.

"Oh toots, you are _hilarious_ " The Joker said wiping tears from his eyes as he sat back up and placed his hand back in Lilith's. She re-started the tattoo with a small smirk on her face.

"My point is J; I don't care about the men who come in here. Only their money" Lilith added simply. She finished the tattoo in silence but could feel The Joker's questioning eyes on her the entire time. She sighed and put her tattoo gun down once she was finished and looked up at The Joker.

"What?" She asked making The Joker cock his head to the side slightly.

"I can literally feel you wanting to ask me another question so just spit it out" Lilith snapped making The Joker raise an eyebrow at her attitude before cracking his neck.

"You said that you don't care about _those_ men so why did you stitch _me_ back up?" The Joker asked genuinely confused by this. Lilith grinned and stood up, finally letting go of The Joker's hand. She clicked her tongue as if thinking about her answer but she knew straight away what it was that was different about The Joker.

"You're like me" Lilith said shocking The Joker and turning away from him to put away her tattoo kit. She turned around to find The Joker standing directly in front of her. Lilith felt her heart skip a beat at the closeness but she ignored it and focused her attention on the 'J' tattoo she had done. The Joker was also feeling a strange new emotion by being this close to Lilith but he ignored it to focus on a tiny scar along her left eyebrow.

"What do you mean _I'm like you_?" The Joker asked curiously searching Lilith's face for some sort of answer to the millions of questions that he has about this strange, mysterious woman that was currently in his life. Lilith smirked because she knew that she had The Joker's head swirling and she stepped even closer to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, her thumb gently touching his cheek. She leaned in close to his ear making The Joker's eye close on instinct.

"You have no loyalties to anyone in Gotham's Underworld" Lilith whispered before laughing as she left The Joker stunned and frustrated and even more confused by this strange woman.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

The next day Lilith woke up to the sunrise coming through her window. She blinked herself awake and sat up, cracking her neck and back. She heard the doorbell ring indicating that she had a customer. She looked at the clock to see it was 5am in the morning.

"Why don't these people come see me at a normal time?" Lilith muttered to herself as she walked into her shop wearing black boyleg undies and a dark green tank top. What she found was pleasantly surprising; a shirtless Joker wearing the same black suit pants from yesterday and his hair was no longer slick back but roughed up a bit like he had a big night… probably blowing up buildings.

"J? I'm surprised to see you again so soon" Lilith said walking over to him and leaning against her bench. The Joker looked Lilith up and down grinning at her attire.

"I thought you could get these stitches out of me and give me my next tattoo all at once!" The Joker said clapping his hands together excitedly. His eyes bloodshot from staying up all night. Lilith looked down at his wound and walked towards him. The Joker stood completely still as Lilith ran her hand along the wound, checking it's healing process. She kept her hand on his smooth stomach closer than necessarily as she felt his muscles twitch under her skin.

"Yeah, these can come out" Lilith said to herself as she reluctantly pulled her hand away from The Joker and walked across the room to get her First Aid Kit. The Joker let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding once Lilith stepped away from him. He went and laid down on the work bench as Lilith quickly took out the stitches while The Joker tapped his fingers on the table.

"So toots, how's your day been?" The Joker asked making Lilith raise an eyebrow confused.

"You… You are making small talk with me?" Lilith asked trying not to laugh while The Joker placed a hand lightly over her mouth, the hand with the tattooed smile on it so it looked like she was smiling. Lilith stopped moving instantly and watched The Joker cautiously. The Joker watched her curiously before removing his hand and grinning.

"You intrigue me and I want to know more about things that intrigue me" The Joker explained honestly. Lilith searched The Joker for any hint of deception but found none. So, either he was telling the truth or a _really_ good liar. Lilith didn't know which one was the case right now. She turned away from The Joker making him chuckle to himself before she picked up a carbon paper with the next tattoo already drawn on it. It was a larger smile about the same size as the 'Joker' along his stomach.

"Where you want it?" Lilith asked walking back over to him. The Joker reached out and traced the spot-on Lilith's stomach wear he wanted it the tattoo to go; just underneath her belly button. Lilith froze at the touch making The Joker smirk to himself. She quickly recovered and started working on the newest tattoo. After a few minutes of silence the door bell rung and both The Joker and Lilith's head snapped towards the door to find a low-level member of the Maroni. He must have been new because neither Lilith nor The Joker recognised anything about him besides his gear which clearly belonged to Maroni's men.

"I uh… I was told to come here for a tattoo?" The man asked clearly scared. Whether he feared The Joker or of the rumour he was told about Lilith was unknown but both were uninterested in him. Lilith waved him over to one of her waiting chairs before continuing with The Joker's tattoo. The silence that was comfortable with Lilith and The Joker was now tense as Maroni's man kept looking at The Joker before looking down when he noticed The Joker was glaring at him.

"Stop it J, you're going to make the poor kid wet himself" Lilith said to him slightly amused.

"He _ruined_ our time alone toots" The Joker growled making the mobster stand up quickly.

"I…I'll just leave" The boy said and went to walk out of the shop when he ran into another customer, a member of the Falcone Family.

"Hey watch it!' The Falcone man said and shoved Maroni's guy. Quickly a fight broke out between the two men, both clearly new to Gotham because they hadn't been told about Lilith's Neutral Zone. The Joker stood up annoyed, planning to kill them both for interrupting his time with _his_ tattooist but before he could even take a step forward, a gunshot went off behind him. Lilith had pulled out a pistol, seemingly out of nowhere and shot the wall in-between the men's head making them both stop and look at her terrified. Their heads were only centimetres apart showing off Lilith's remarkable skill.

"Get out" Lilith said dangerously calm and both men left the shop so quickly that they almost trip over themselves. The Joker stared at Lilith shocked and impressed, his mouth hanging open slightly.

"Now _where_ did you learn to shot like that toots?" The Joker asked once he had recovered but Lilith chose to ignore him and quickly finished his tattoo in silence. She stood up and packed away her things quickly, clearly trying to get out of the room. The Joker grabbed her wrist tightly making her whip around and press the gun on The Joker's forehead, the heat of the barrel burning him slightly.

"Let. Go. Of. Me" Lilith warned dangerously, The Joker surprised by this side of Lilith. The normal amused or indifferent eyes of Lilith were now staring daggers into The Jokers confused eyes.

"Why are they all so scared you?" The Joker growled frustrated at not knowing anything about this mysterious woman. He let go of Lilith and paced the room angrily but when he turned around she was had disappeared. He was all alone. The Joker growled again and pulled out his phone, calling Hunter.

"Boss?" Hunter asked into the phone.

"I want you to set up a meeting with the Crime Bosses in the club. Tonight." The Joker growled into the phone before hanging up. He took one last look at the door Lilith disappeared in and left the shop.

…..


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Hunter watched as his boss, The Joker, lean forward resting his hands on a new dark purple cane while his eyes were closed. If Hunter didn't know any better he would say The Joker was sleeping, but he did know better. The Joker was picturing his new club on it's opening night; the dancers, the live entertainment, the bartenders and the happy, drunk customers. He opened his eyes and dancers, bartenders and customers were replaced by construction workers. The sound of live entertainment was replaced by drills and hammers. And in the middle of the room was the four bosses of the main crime families in Gotham; Falcone, Maroni, Riley and Sabatino.

"It's time to welcome our guests" The Joker chuckled as he looked over at Hunter. Hunter nodded silently and left the room. The Joker watched as Hunter walked down stairs and asked the crime bosses to follow him upstairs. The Joker remained sitting as the bosses along with their body guards walked into the upstairs office that overlooked the entire club.

"What's this about Joker?" Sabatino asked with in his thick Italian accent. The Joker motioned for them to take a seat but they all remained sitting which made him chuckle again.

"Gentlemen, I have a question. Just one teeny, tiny question that I need _all_ of you to answer tonight" The Joker said tapping his fingers on his cane before leaning back in his purple leather lounge.

"Stop playing games, what's the question?" Falcone asked wanting to get away from this unpredictable, dangerous man. The Joker held his tattooed hand over his face showing the smiley face before moving it away to reveal his own smiling face.

" _Why_ do you all fear the woman who gave us all these _wonderful_ tattoos?" The Joker asked curiously as he pretended to place his smiling hand over the crime bosses faces to replace the frowns that were plastered there at the moment.

"We don't talk about 'The Tattooist'" Maroni said seriously while Falcone, Riley and Sabatino nodded agreeing. Maybe the only time that those four men were agreeing on the same thing. This response made The Joker's grin falter slightly before he started laughing. But this wasn't his normal happy laugh this was a very dangerous, dark laugh. The Joker stood up and took a step towards the crimes bosses, their body guards quickly took a step in-between their respective bosses and The Joker.

"Why not?" The Joker growled spinning the cane around his hands, enjoying the way the body guard's eyes watched the cane warily. When none of the bosses answered, The Joker pulled out his gun and shot Sabatino and Riley's body guards in the head, execution style. A tense silence filled the room as the bodies dropped to the floor with a thud.

"Joker… Mr. J… you can torture and shoot every single one of us but I promise you none of us will talk about 'The Tattooist'. Not out of loyalty. No, out of fear because we fear her more than we fear you" Falcone explained honestly stunning The Joker and his jaw dropped slightly.

"Now it's time for me to ask you a question; why don't you just ask her yourself?" Falcone asked and The Joker stayed quiet making Falcone grin.

"I think you did ask her and she shut you down just like we are doing. Which makes me curious as to why you didn't threaten, torture and kill her?" Falcone said grinning before The Joker grabbed him by the through and shoved him against the wall with a knife at his throat. Falcone's guard stepped forward but his boss stopped him with a hand movement.

"You know what? I am going to find out about her one way or another, even if I have to go through _her_ " The Joker growled before tossing Falcone into his guard and dismissing the crime bosses.

….

Lilith walked down the street carrying a bag full of groceries until she reached a dark alley. She ducked down the dark alley and come to the front of her shop. She pulled out her keys while balancing the groceries in one arm. She walked into the dark room and didn't even bother turning on the lights she walked through the shop and into the back area which included her kitchen and lounge room in one. She dumped the groceries on the table and went over to her kitchen draw and pulled out a small pistol. She walked back to the shop and turned on the light, pointing her gun at the intruder she spotted on her way in. She was surprised to find it was The Joker sitting in the work chair wearing a dark purple suit with a dark purple cane twirling around his fingers.

"What are you doing here?" Lilith asked, not lowering her pistol because she knows The Joker's reputation when it comes to people who have pissed him off and she was one of those people after their last encounter.

"I had a meeting with Gotham's most notorious crime bosses tonight, want to know what we talked about?" The Joker asked still twirling the cane around his fingers.

"My guess is you tried to ask them about me and they refused so now you are back here to threaten me until I tell you what you want to know but here's the big secret J, I'm not scared of you and we both know you won't kill me no matter how angry you are at me" Lilith explained making The Joker growl annoyed because she spoke the truth about everything. The Joker stopped twirling his cane and watched Lilith curiously. Lilith sighed and put down the pistol, placing it on the table.

"I'll tell you what, J. I'll tell you everything you want to know about me but you have to do something first" Lilith said surprising The Joker, he stood up and walked towards Lilith cocking his head to the side.

"Now what do you want me to do, doll-face?" The Joker asked softly

"Give me one _good_ reason why you want to know so much? Why you care about _my_ past so much?" Lilith asked frustrated making The Joker freeze. Lilith watched as he opened his mouth and closed it several times before growling and storming out of the shop. Lilith watched him go feeling something tug at her heart but she clicked her tongue and walked back into the kitchen to put her groceries away.

….


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

A month had passed since Lilith had seen the Joker and she was annoyed to admit to herself that she missed his company. She looked at her phone to see that it was the night of The Joker's Grand Opening for his night club; Killing Joke. Lilith smirked to herself before going to her closet and pulling out a short black dress that zipped up the front. It had long sleeves with slits cut up them along with a slit across the front that showed a nice amount of cleavage. She pulled her hair out of the normal messy bun and it fell in waves around her shoulders. She applied a small amount of makeup; most eye liner and mascara before putting on black knee high boots.

"Let's do this" Lilith said to herself in the mirror before leaving her shop and walking down the street. It only took her 10 minutes to get to the night club and she found it easily with the flashing lights and loud music playing. She waited in line like the hundreds of other people and flashed her I.D to the security guard who happened to be Hunter. Hunter recognized her immediately and let her through not even looking at her I.D. The moment Lilith disappeared into the club Hunter pulled out his phone and called his boss.

Lilith looked around to see two different rooms. A nightclub; loud music, drunk people, the usual thing. A strip club; poles on top of tables, mostly full of lonely old men. And finally, a restricted door that Lilith assumed lead to The Joker's private rooms upstairs that overlooked the entire club. Lilith turned left and walked into the nightclub. She pushed her way through the crowd until she found the bar and stood behind a male who had clearly already drunk too much since he smelt of alcohol and vomit. Lilith rolled her eyes in disgust as she waited to get served. She caught the eye of said male who immediately tried to hit of her. Before Lilith could reply sarcastically the male looked past Lilith before running away; literally running away. There was only one person who had that effect on grown males and so Lilith turned around to reveal The Joker standing there grinning at Lilith.

"My, my, my, isn't this a _pleasant_ surprise" The Joker said and even though the music was loud Lilith could hear The Joker every word and amused tone. Lilith rolled her eyes and causally looked around the room.

"Well, I figured since you come to my work and annoy me that I'd return the favor" Lilith teased making The Joker chuckle before clicking his tongue.

"Now, now, I haven't been into your shop in almost 2 months so I can't…" The Joker started to say before stopping and his smiled widely and cackled.

"Doll-face! Did you miss little old me?" The Joker teased tapping his cane on Lilith's nose. Lilith quickly swiped the cane out of his hand shocking him and she stepped closer to him.

"Actually, I just wanted to know when you would be back to finish your tattoo's. You paid me enough for another 2 or 3 tattoos and I don't like owing people" Lilith stated but both The Joker and Lilith knew she was lying. Lilith watched The Joker open his mouth and was prepared for him to tease her because he caught onto her lie but he instead surprised not just her but himself.

"Would you like to come up to my _private_ room and get a drink with me?" The Joker asked holding out his arm. Lilith's eyes widened for a moment before handing him his cane back and linking arms with him, feeling her heart skip a beat at the contact. The Joker lead her out of the nightclub and over to the door that said 'Restricted' on it. He opened it up and motioned for Lilith to go first. Lilith stepped past The Joker and walked up the stairs, ignoring the fact that she knew The Joker was staring at her ass. The stairs eventually lead to another door which was being guarded by 2 large security men. They opened the doors for Lilith and The Joker to reveal large open room with glass walls that overlooked the nightclub on one side and the strip club on the other side. In the middle of the room was two large purple lounges and a bar full of alcohol.

"What would you like to drink?" The Joker asked taking off her purple suit jacket and folding it over the lounge chair revealing a white button up shirt. Lilith walked over and sat down on the lounge watching as The Joker walked over to his private bar and pulled out two glasses.

"Scotch on the rocks" Lilith said making The Joker make a noise of approval as he poured some ice cubes into the glasses and topped them up with expensive top shelf scotch. He walked over and handed one to Lilith before sitting down next to her and watching silently as she took a large sip of her scotch. Suddenly there was a commotion outside and the crime bosses; Falcone and Maroni, stormed into the room angrily. Earlier on in the night The Joker had killed both of their second in commands. Lilith looked past the crime bosses to see the two security guards knocked out on the ground.

"It's hard to find good help" The Joker grumbled to Lilith before his eyes focuses back on Falcone and Maroni who were now staring at Lilith confused.

"What are you doing here?" Falcone demanded, Lilith making her eyebrow at his tone.

"Getting a drink, what does it look like?" Lilith asked sarcastically as she held up her glass of scotch to prove her point. The Joker cackled from beside her but for the moment Falcone and Maroni ignored him.

"But you hate our kind of people? You hate the crime families" Maroni asked his eyes not leaving Lilith as she faked confusion and turned to The Joker.

"You lied to me! You told me you weren't part of the crime families!" Lilith mocked angrily making The Joker laugh loudly; his famous unnerving laughter. Lilith turned back to Falcone and Maroni amused.

"J isn't part of the crime families and he sure as hell isn't like any of you" Lilith explained simply taking another sip of his drink with The Joker watched with great amusement and pride. The Joker felt a warmth flow through him as Lilith gave him a compliment in saying he wasn't like any of the crime bosses.

"If you become a known associate of The Joker then you will lose all of your customers. No one, from any of the crime families, is going to come to you if you are loyal to _him_ " Falcone threatened making The Joker growl in the back of his throat at the thought of Falcone threatening _his_ tattooist. Lilith chuckled darkly before finishing her glass of scotch and placing it on the table. She stood up and walked over to Falcone and Maroni, making them step back slightly. The Joker lent forward on his knees watching with excitement.

"Well, I _could_ always go back to my old employmen _t_ " Lilith threatened darkly her eyes staring daggers at Falcone and Maroni. They both gulped and left the room quickly. Lilith watched them leave annoyed before hearing The Joker laugh loudly from behind her. She turned around and faced The Joker.

"Now tha _t_ was amusing, doll-face" The Joker said wiping tears away from his eyes. He stood up and walked over to Lilith.

"But I can't help wondering… what _was_ your previous employment?" The Joker asked walked circles around Lilith. Lilith watched him and placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him from moving.

"Now, now, don't ruin a good night" Lilith said amused but was silently hoping he would let it go because she was enjoying his company. The Joker searched her eyes before placing his tattooed hand over her mouth softly, slightly stroking her cheek without noticing.

"Another drink?" The Joker asked removing his hand and walking over to bar while Lilith walked back over to the lounge.

…


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The Joker and Lilith arrived back at the shop around 4am the next day after spending all night drinking at the club. Most of the night consisted of them making fun of the customers down in the night club and strip club; what they wore, what they looked like, who they flirted with, who they went home with etc. And then when the club had closed and everyone had slithered bed; either their own or someone else's, Lilith and The Joker spent another hour talking about small things; alcohol, the designs of the club, and Lilith found out that The Joker was the person who had drawn all the tattoo designs in that folder. Lilith hadn't had that much fun in years and The Joker hadn't had that much fun that didn't include blowing things up or killing people… ever. Lilith was wearing The Joker's dark purple suit jacket over her shoulders and was carrying her boots in her hands. The Joker's white button up shirt sleeves were now rolled up to his elbows. They were currently laughing as they remembered a couple having a very public argument in the middle of the strip club when suddenly, Lilith stopped walked abruptly making The Joker stop quickly before he bumped into her.

"What…" The Joker said confused and drunk before looking past Lilith to see that her shop windows were smashed, glassed littered the alley that hid Lilith's shop. Lilith walked through glass, ignoring the broken glass and stepped through the broken window to find the entire shop was trashed. The picture frames of her tattoo work were smashed and broken on the floor, her work bench had an axe sticking out of it and several chucks of it were missing as if someone had hit it a few times. The Joker watched angrily as Lilith walked past all the damage and over to something broken into pieces in the corner of the room. Upon closer inspection, The Joker realized it was her tattoo gun, broken into at least four pieces and her ink was split all over the hardwood floor.

"Doll-face, I promise I'm going to kill every single member of the Falcone and Maroni family" The Joker seethed placing a hand on Lilith's shoulder and spinning her around to face him. This movement broke Lilith out of the trance that the broken tattoo kit had put her in and smiled up at him.

"Don't stress about it, J" Lilith said casually, making The Joker look at her confused. He moved the hand that was on her shoulder and tapped her lightly on the forehead with one knuckle, as if she was having some sort of mental breakdown to seeing her trashed shop and he was trying to bring her back to reality.

"Hello, is anyone in there? You're a tattooist whose tattoo shop and tattoo kit was just smashed and broken" The Joker explained carefully as if he was expecting Lilith to break down into tears any moment. Lilith chuckled and swatted away The Joker's hand before walking over to the work bench and pulled the axe out of the table. She twirled it around her hands and even though she was quite intoxicated, she never lost control of the axe. She walked over and lent it against the wall next to a picture of a wolf tattoo picture that was smashed on the floor.

"No, I'm a woman who worked as a tattooist to pay bills. I'm a woman whose shop and tattoo kit were smashed and broken by two crime bosses who tried to tell me who I could hang out with and when they realized they couldn't, they resorted to petty vandalism. Thus, showing just how scared of me they really are" Lilith explained amused taking off The Joker's jacket and placed it gently over The Joker's shoulder, while he watched in amazement by his attitude.

"So, what are you going to do now? No one from the Gotham's Underworld is going to come to you for a tattoo, your business is basically…" The Joker started to say before being interrupted by Lilith chuckling.

"Yes, J. I am fully aware that my tattoo business is now finished, no need to remind me that I need to find a new way to make money, I think the trashed shop and equipment is reminder enough" Lilith said sarcastically but her eyes were playful making The Joker shut his mouth grinning slightly and shrugged half-ass apologetically.

"Looks like you'll need to find a new tattooist to finish off your work of art" Lilith continued to tease but The Joker just clicked his tongue dismissing the joke, not really finding it funny because know he would need to find a new reason to come and visit his tattooist… not his tattooist anymore. The Joker snapped out of his thoughts before they got too confronting and stepped closer to Lilith, placing a hand on gently on Lilith's cheek.

"But seriously, what are you going to do, doll-face?" The Joker asked surprising Lilith by his genuine concern. Lilith placed a hand over his own before stepping back and shrugging while doing a slight twirl without a care in the world. She picked up the picture of the wolf tattoo that was next to the axe and dusted off the broken glass and wood frame splinters before looking down at the picture fondly.

"Don't know; but, uh, don't you worry your pretty little head about it J, I always bounce back" Lilith said laughing before disappearing into the backdoor that led to her home. The Joker watched her with a small, genuine smile on his face before looking around the trashed shop angrily. His eyes looked over at the broken tattoo kit for a moment before he walked out of the shop through the broken window, his suit jacket over his shoulder and the sun rising in the distance.

….


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

A week had passed since Lilith's shop had been broken into and The Joker strolled down the dark alleyway that lead to her shop to find the broken windows were now fixed. The shattered glass that was once covering the floor was now gone; well most of it, it is an alleyway after all. He pushed open the door that still had a broken lock on it to reveal what once was the shop was now a large room full with boxes.

"Doll-face?" The Joker asked curiously hearing noise coming from… somewhere in the room. He heard a muffled noise and followed it around several boxes to find Lilith sitting on a pile of newspapers that covered the entire shop floor. She was wearing short denim shorts and a white t-shirt that was covered in paint. The paint was in her hair, her arms, legs clothes it was everywhere. The Joker looked at the walls and noticed that Lilith had painted every single wall in her shop with the tattoo designs that used to be hanging on her walls. She was currently painting a massive picture of a howling wolf at the moon. Lilith just finished her final stroke with the paintbrush and looked up at The Joker with a grin.

"I see you've been keeping busy" The Joker commented as he put down the black bag he was carrying and held out a hand for Lilith to take. Lilith grabbed The Joker's hand and let him help her to stand up, her legs were almost numb from sitting on them for so long that she stumbled slightly.

"It's time for my next tattoo Doll-face" The Joker said reluctantly letting go of Lilith's hand and watching as Lilith started laughing before looking around the room.

"Did you forget that I don't have a tattoo kit or ink anymore?" Lilith asked moving a piece of her hair out of her face but consequently putting some brown paint from her hand on her cheek. The Joker wiped away the paint softly before realizing what he did and took a step back putting on his fake laughter.

"I have not forgotten BUT I got you a little present!" The Joker explained excitedly, back to his normal self again. He picked up the black bag and pulled out a custom designed dark purple tattoo gun and ink set. Lilith's jaw dropped as she took the tattoo gun in her shaking hands and ran a finger across the wolf design on the handle.

"Why?" She asked softly, afraid if she spoke anymore her voice would stutter from the sheer shock that someone did something nice for her. And not just someone but The Infamous Joker himself. The Joker shrugged casually and pulled out the dark purple folder with his tattoo designs in them and held it out for her to take.

"Because I paid _you_ for these tattoos and I'm going to get them from _you_ " The Joker replied as Lilith took the purple folder in one hand as she was hugging the tattoo gun close to her chest with her other hand. Both the Joker and Lilith knew it wasn't about the money for him; he just wanted to do something nice for her but didn't want to admit it. Lilith gave him a knowing look but left it alone just like he had left alone the fact that she had missed him for the month they didn't see each other.

"Alright, well the next tattoo is the set of cards so uh, pull up a box while I get cleaned up" Lilith said placing the folder on a box and gently placed the tattoo gun next to it before disappearing into the door that connected to her home. The Joker took this time to look around and saw that the boxes were actually furniture to replace the stuff that got broken. There was a work bench, a lounge, a set of chairs and a couple of small tables. The Joker found a box that was of a simply single chair and opened it. By the time, Lilith had returned with clean jeans and a black t-shirt as well as no more paint covering her body, The Joker had put together two of the small chairs and made a little room next to an electrical outlet and plugged in the tattoo gun. Lilith raised an eyebrow at the little temporary work area that The Joker had created but remained silent as she went over and sat across from him. She spent the next few hours drawing the cards onto the carbon paper and then tattooing it onto The Joker's neck. They remained silent for most of it besides the occasional 'Move your neck here' from Lilith. But that's what The Joker and Lilith both loved about hanging out; they didn't always need to talk, they were perfectly comfortable in silence. The Joker did notice that the entire time Lilith was doing the tattoo she had a small genuine smile on her lips and her eyes always kept drifting back to the tattoo gun as if reminding herself that it was real. This filled The Joker with a warmth that for once he enjoyed and didn't want to get rid of it.

"Alright, it's all done" Lilith said sitting back and gently placing the tattoo gun on the box they were using as a table until she could be bother to build it. The Joker stood up and smoothed down his suit jacket as he watched Lilith look down at the tattoo gun once more before looking up at The Joker.

"Thank you" She whispered still moved by the nice thing he did for her and she stood on her tip toes and kissed The Joker on the cheek, the corner of her lips touching the corner of his. This movement stunned The Joker for a moment before his eyes darkened and his shoved Lilith up against the wall, trapping her body with his and placing his arms on either side of her head, his forehead almost touching hers.

"Do no _t_ tease me _Doll-face_ " The Joker warned darkly as his breathing picked up and his almost black eyes stared into Lilith's slightly amused eyes. She winked at him before swiftly and skillfully spun them around so her body was trapping him against the wall. Lilith had an amused look on her face before leaning forward and gently, almost like a feather touch, she kissed The Joker's neck just above where she had done the tattoo. The moment The Joker felt her lips against his neck, his body froze and his breathing stopped. Lilith took advantage of his dazed state and slipped back into her house with her new tattoo gun. The moment she was out of sight and had the door closed she slide down to the floor hugging the purple present from the man outside and took a deep breath recovering from the close contact with The Joker as well. She once more looked at the tattoo gun in her hands and hugged it tightly while biting her lip happily. The Joker had finally recovered from his dazed state and touched his neck where her lips came into contact softly before blinking away his shock and looked around the room. He left the shop quickly in the mood to blow something up and get back into his normal state of mind. That woman made him feel things that he wasn't sure if he liked or not but he couldn't get enough off.

…


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Lilith sat up straight in her bed as the clock ticked over to midnight, normally it was a dream that would have woken her but tonight it was a noise. More specifically it was a noise coming from her former shop. She could hear someone moving around in there so she quickly put up her hair in a messy bun and slid silently out of her bed wearing a long white shirt that went to her thighs. She moved downstairs, not making any noise as she pulled out her pistol from the kitchen draw before opening the door and turning on the light to reveal the security guard from The Joker's club; Hunter. Lilith was about to ask him what he was doing here before she saw the reason herself. Next to Hunter was an almost unconscious Joker pleading heavily from several lacerations along his stomach.

"Put him on the table" Lilith said quickly as she put the pistol on the newly made set of drawers while Hunter laid The Joker on the newly made work bench. Lilith grabbed out the first aid kit from her set of drawers and moved over to The Joker cutting off his blood soaked white button up shirt. Lilith's breath caught in her throat when she saw the depth of the lacerations in his stomach.

"Who did this?" Lilith demanded angrily as she quickly got to work cleaning the wounds and stitching the deepest one first. It ran vertically through the letter 'J' of his 'Joker' tattoo. Hunter opened his mouth to explain but The Joker's deranged laughter cut him off.

"Batsy, Batsy, Batsy" The Joker sung delusional from his loss of blood. Lilith raised her eyebrow as she continued her work but she had been hearing on the news more and more about this 'Batman' vigilante. She had no time for a grown man who dressed up in a bat suit.

"The man that the boss ordered your custom tattoo kit from sold him out to the Batman" Hunter explained spitefully, leaning against a newly built wall unit. Lilith heard the hateful and blaming tone that Hunter had used but she honestly couldn't care less. She was more concerned about getting these wounds stitched before The Joker lose any more blood. She started to question _why_ she cared so much about this strange man lying in front of her but she quickly shoved that question aside not wanting to really think about it and confess anything, even to herself.

"Give me that bandage and help me lift him up" Lilith ordered pointing to the roll of bandages next to Hunter. He glared at her before grabbing the bandage and tossing it to her and walked over to The Joker. Hunter held The Joker up ignoring the groans of pain from his boss while Lilith wrapped the bandage around The Joker's torso.

"All right, help me get him up to my bedroom so he can get some rest" Lilith said simply as she helped The Joker sit up and move his legs off the table. Hunter opened his mouth to argue with her but The Joker spoke first.

"It's okay Hunter. You can trust her. There is no one I trust more" The Joker muttered surprising both Lilith and Hunter. The two of them wrapped The Joker's arms around their necks and carried The Joker up to Lilith's bed so he could get some rest before Hunter quickly left the building. Lilith didn't even spare him a second glance as she grabbed a bottle of water and some strong painkillers for The Joker. She sat on the edge of her bed and helped The Joker take the tablets while listening to him ramble about how he was going to kill the Batman. Lilith pulled out a knife from her bedside table and started to sharpen it as she fell into a deep thought, almost meditation like state, and thought about what she was going to do for money. She could always continue her tattoo shop but just advertise for 'normal' people. She quickly shook that thought away because she knew that she would never fit into 'normal' society.

After several moments of silence Lilith thought The Joker had finally fallen asleep but when she looked down at him, he was staring glassy eyed at her. The painkillers had finally kicked in.

"You know… you know what?" The Joker mumbled making Lilith make a noise in the back of her throat to show that she was listening to him.

"Toots… Toots is such a mystery to me…" The Joker started to say making Lilith realize that he had no idea who he was talking too. Lilith sat further on the bed, leaning her back against the wall while The Joker laid next to her, his head rest slightly against her thigh.

"She is such a mystery but so fascinating! I am going to solve the mystery of Toots one day even if it takes forever" The Joker admitted making Lilith lick her lips unsure of how to proceed.

"What are you going to do once you solve the puzzle of Toots?" Lilith asked hoping the sound of her voice didn't make him realize who he was talking too. The Joker blinked several times in his drug induced state and opened him mouth to reply. Lilith honestly just assumed that once she wasn't a mystery to him The Joker would either try to kill her or simply move on and forget about her. Both things made her chest hurt but what he did say was _not_ something she expected.

"I am going to make her my queen" The Joker said confidently before falling into a deep sleep. The Jokers confession left Lilith with her mouth hanging open in shock as she sat frozen on the bed next to him listening his breathing. Lilith shook her head convincing herself that he was only saying this because of the drugs as she laid down on top of the blankets that were covering The Joker and drifted into a restless sleep.

….

The Joker woke up early the next morning groggy and confused. He opened his eyes and blinked the tiredness away and tried to sit up before feeling the sharp pain in his stomach. He winced and looked down at his bandaged torso remembering the events of tomorrow. He felt the bed move next to him and realized what had woken him up. Lilith was tossing and turning in her sleep next to him. She was having a nightmare. The Joker ignored the pain in his stomach and tried to shake Lilith awake. Lilith's eyes snapped open but she was still living in her nightmare as she quickly bounced on The Joker, straddling him and pressing the knife she was sharpened the night before against him throat.

"I, uh, think I've got enough holes in me at the moment, don't you?" The Joker joked making Lilith blink a few times as she realized where she was and who she was sitting on top off. Lilith muttered something under her breath as she quickly climbed off The Joker and silently checked his wounds to make sure she hadn't ripped any of the stitches. The Joker watched her amused for a moment before realizing that Lilith was avoiding eye contact. She was feeling vulnerable about her nightmares. The Joker quickly thinks of a way to take her mind off the nightmare.

"You know what, Toots? You should become my personal medic. I have a feeling that with the, uh, Batman hanging around the city I'm going to need one" The Joker said making Lilith look at him shocked. Lilith didn't even realize she was still resting a hand on The Joker's stomach as she sat cross-legged next to him on the bed.

"I'd uh, pay you so you don't need to worry abou _t_ a new job and…" The Joker explained before trailing off because he almost said to her that it would mean they got to spend some more time together.

"Sure… I'll take the job" Lilith said after blinking away her shock. The Joker grinned a genuine smile for the first time ever.

"But, uh, _toots_ , if you are going to be my personal medic I'm going to… I'm going to need to know some _information_ about you" The Joker explained carefully because he knew how she'd react. Lilith tensed up quickly and went to leave the room but The Joker caught her hand that was previously resting on his stomach and entwined him fingers with hers shocking both himself and Lilith. Lilith's eyes widened as she looked down at their entwined hands.

"Let's start with something easy okay? What's your name?" The Joker asked surprisingly soft as Lilith sat down on the bed next to him with a small smirk on her lips.

"You first" She said raising her eyes challenging him to trust her as much as he wants her to trust him. The Joker narrowed him eyes slightly before cocking his head to the side slightly and taking a deep breath.

"I don't know. I woke up a few months ago, just outside of Gotham with no memory" The Joker confessed seriously. Lilith stared at The Joker for several moments trying to figure out if he was telling the truth or just lying to get the information he wanted from her. She finally concluded that he wasn't messing with her and nodding to him ever so slightly that she believed him. The Joker felt a flood of relief go through him unnerving himself that he cared so much about whether she believed him or not. Thankfully he was brought out of his emotions by one word.

"Lilith" She introduced softly.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

A week later The Joker woke up to find Lilith cooking breakfast in the kitchen wearing a long black t-shirt and dark red boyleg undies. Joker sat up and cocked his head to the side grinning as he watched Lilith's ass sway as she walked around the kitchen.

"Stop staring at my ass J" Lilith said without even turning around making Joker open his mouth to ask 'how she knew he was awake' but closed it smiling at the ever-growing mystery of Lilith and he was slowing going to figure her out. He was.

"Do you ever sleep _Lilith_?" Joker asked thinking about the fact that he has only ever seen her sleep once and it ended in her having a nightmare. Lilith hide her smile at the way her name sounded coming from The Joker's lips before turning around to face him and shrugging.

"A little but I…" Lilith started to say before trailing off.

"You have nightmares" Joker finished for her and Lilith nodded as she gave a plate of bacon and eggs to Joker. He nodded a thanks to her and while he was extremely curious about her nightmares he had only just gotten her to tell him her name and didn't want to push her and make her pull away. They sat in a comfortable silence while they ate their breakfast before Joker's phone started buzzing in his jacket pocket. Lilith reached over and grabbed it, tossing it to The Joker who caught it easily and answered it.

"Yeah?" Joker asked knowing it was Hunter because this was their private phone.

"I'm out the front" Hunter said making Joker look over at Lilith, not really wanting to leave Lilith but knowing he had some work to do after sitting on his ass for the past week.

"Got to go, Lilith. See you soon" Joker said reluctantly before leaving the house to find Hunter out the front in the purple sports car.

"How you feeling boss?" Hunter asked as The Joker slid into the backseat holding his stitches unconsciously.

"F _i_ ne thanks to L… The Tattooist. Which reminds me, she is going to be my new _personal_ medic so uh, when I'm injured you bring me to her. Understand?" The Joker asked as he saw Hunter clench his jaw in the rearview mirror before nodding silently. The Joker grinned and leant forward between the seats.

"Problem?" The Joker asked curiously right next to Hunter's face. Hunter sighed not wanting to tell his boss what he had discovered but also knew better than to lie to The Joker.

"I've been hearing some rumors about this woman boss…" Hunter explained cautiously making The Joker clap his hands excitedly and climb into the front passenger seat ignoring the pain in his stomach but subtly checked to see if he had ripped the stitches knowing Lilith would be pissed if he ripped the stitches 10 minutes after leaving her house.

"Story time! How _exciting; tell me_ MORE" The Joker growled dangerously leaning an arm on Hunter's shoulder casually but Hunter knew it was The Joker's way of saying 'you don't have a choice in this and if you don't tell me you are getting shoved out of this moving car'.

"Ok… well around 8 years ago, before either of us came to Gotham, there was a hitman known as Lupus. Lupus was active in Gotham for 5 years and was known as the best because there was never any trace left of the victim besides proof of death. The crime families feared Lupus because no one knew what Lupus looked like. Also, everyone knew Lupus was loyal to no one and would double cross any member of any crime family for the right amount of money" Hunter explained while The Joker listened curiously. He was very excited to find out as much information about Lilith as he could but right now he was doubting the truth behind this rumor his second in command was bringing him.

"Why does Gotham's underworld think that this _Lupus_ hitman is The Tattooist?" Joker asked curiously leaning back in his seat and thinking how exciting it would be if Lilith _was_ this hitman.

"Well, remember how I said Lupus never left any trace of the body besides proof of death?" Hunter asked and Joker nodded over dramatically slow.

"I remember like you told me 30 seconds ago," Joker chuckled making Hunter roll his eyes.

" _Anyways_ proof of death was always the same thing; a piece of skin with a tattoo on it to identify the victim to the person who hired the hit and if the victim didn't have a tattoo Lupus would tattoo a picture of a wolf on them and then send that piece of skin as proof of death" Hunter explained as Joker started laughing hysterically as he remember the wolf tattoo on Lilith's thigh, the tattoo of the daggers on her back and when her shop was destroyed the only thing she kept was the picture of the wolf.

"You got a dark side, toots" Joker taunted excitedly as thoughts of Lilith killing people racing through his brain.

"This is going to be fun" Joker muttered to himself as he imagined running around Gotham City killing people and causing chaos with Lilith as his queen. Hunter watched his boss worried about him getting to involved with this woman.

….

Lilith walked down the alleyway that lead to her shop carrying an armful of medic supplies and first aid kits. It had been a few days since she had seen The Joker but she knew sooner or later he would need her to patch him up again and she wanted to be ready for anything. She had surprised herself when she had told him her name but the moment she said let it slip, it just felt right to her. She walked through the room that used to be her tattoo shop and was now transformed into a loungeroom/surgery room for when The Joker needed medical attention. She had gotten rid of her tattoo work bench and bought a table that the hospitals used in surgery rooms. She had a set of draws full of equipment used for stitches, digging out bullets, anything that she might need. On the other side of the room was a 3-seater lounge, a 24-inch TV and a coffee table that had her special designed tattoo kit from The Joker sitting in the middle for when The Joker wanted a new tattoo. Lilith dumped the new supplies on the surgery table before walking into the kitchen to find The Joker sitting on the bench holding the picture of a wolf in his hands. He looked up as Lilith walked into the room and grinned widely at her.

"Hel- _lo_ Lilith. We need to _talk_ " The Joker said making Lilith raise an eyebrow at him but nodded and walked into the kitchen, pulling out 2 beers and handing 1 to The Joker.

"About what?" Lilith asked curiously walking opposite Joker and leant against the wall crossing her arms.

"I've been hearing some rumors about you and I _need_ to know if they are true. I need it. I really, really _need_ to know" The Joker said making Lilith roll her eyes at him repeating himself.

"Well, that depends on what rumors you've heard J" Lilith explained simply making The Joker laugh and jump down from the counter and skip over to Lilith placing the wolf picture against her chest. Lilith grabbed the picture and looked at it fondly while The Joker watched.

"Are you Lupus?" The Joker whispered, leaning in close to her ear so she could feel his breath on her neck. Lilith froze and the picture frame slipped through her fingers. It would have smashed against the tiled ground if it wasn't for The Joker catching it and putting it back in its place on the kitchen counter. The Joker knew then that Hunter was correct.

"I'm going to need a verbal answer here Lilith" The Joker teased making Lilith glare at him angrily.

"Yes" Lilith growled through clenched teeth before drinking half of her beer in one go.

"Interesting… so uh, next question. Why didn't you tell me? I mean, it's not like I'm going to judge you" The Joker asked genuinely confused by Lilith's reluctance to tell _him_ about it. Lilith sighed and finished the rest of her beer before rubbing her face frustrated.

"Because that's not who I am anymore J. It's irrelevant information" Lilith snapped before going to walk past The Joker but he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back to him so her back was flush against his chest.

"It's relevant to _me_ , Lilith" The Joker whispered in Lilith's ear before spinning her around and trapping her against the wall.

"I want to know about your past. I want to know what happened to turn the most feared hitman in Gotham into the woman I see here today" The Joker continued forcing Lilith to look into his eyes and see the truth of his words. Lilith wanted to tell him everything. She really did but she never was one to trust people.

"I'll make you a deal J. You tell me why you don't remember your past and I'll tell you why I _don't_ want to remember my past" Lilith offered and The Joker clicked his tongue in thought before nodding.

"Deal, but I can't tell you… I have to show you" The Joker explained softly.

…


End file.
